loose wires big problems and the medic.

[weed of crime]

I had chris p the pinball medic fix a problem the other day in my maverick. Needed a new transistor or something to fix left switches. Anyway he did that no problem, but spent next 40 minutes trying to get my rear lights operating. No success. Left them inoperative. My pain begain when my flippers went bezerk a game after he left. I know little about electronics and he knows this. But he refused to acknowledge it was a direct result of something he did, he claimed my machine was a dud and I should trade it in to Obumper where he works during the day. He refused to come out and have a look unless I paid him another 150. He said he knew everything about pinnies and what I had described was new to him. After practically breaking down in tears he agreed to look at it at his house if I could get it to him. Which I can't. He said pinnies were like used cars. Some were duds. And that mine will break down after every few months. He mentioned none of this while repairing and taking my money. Told me the best thing for me was to pay him another 800 and get it overhauled.
Long story short, I opened it up myself and found a loose wire on flipper coil. Resoldered and problem solved. I get the feeling many issues in pinnies are related to simple loose and bad solder jobs. I'm no expert like chris though.
Long story short. I'm sure many members here have great regard for the pinball medic. I'm not one of em.

[goodolddays]

Congrats on finding and fixing the prob yourself .
You are right, one of the most common problems is a wire becoming disconnected from a coil due to vibration/fatigue, or a dry solder joint  (which means connection has broken down) due to age.

Cheers
Dave

[48]

Good work on sorting the problem yourself 

Unfortunately there is no way of knowing if the problem was caused by the repair guy or if it was just bad timing that it happened after the machine was looked at.

Not sure if it is the right thing to do to tell you your machine is a POS though, .... a little tact might have kept a customer.

Perhaps someone here might have an idea about your rear lights?

[Strangeways]

Glad to hear you fixed it yourself 

I'd suggest the flipper issue was coincidental. I don't think it would be a deliberate act.

However, I find it hard to understand the logic behind the game being "a dud" - but in the same breath suggest it be traded in to Bumper. Is the tech suggesting that Bumper refurbishes "duds" ? Who was he representing ? Himself, or Bumper ?

Anyway, glad to hear you saved yourself $150 by soldering a coil wire 

[48]

I'd suggest the flipper issue was coincidental. I don't think it would be a deliberate act.

 

Hope my comment didn't come across wrong, I didn't mean deliberate, I meant bumped, knocked connection whilst working around on machine.
Cheers,

[weed of crime]

Yeah the whole trade in talk to bumper got my alarm bells ringing. He pretty much told me to offload and start again. That I'd got it cheap (1500 from oscar) and that I'd been taught a harsh lesson. He never suggested maybe a loose wire and I emailed him the video too. I was polite and in desperate need of help. Real worry. I'm a first time buyer and know techs are in high demand but this experience has left me in real fear of future problems...

[weed of crime]

He also couldn't explain why the pinnie had shorted out and cut the power in my home. His explanation was that maybe my house was struck by lightning. I found this bizarre given his experience.

[ddstoys]

Pins can be frustrating things some times.     If you have problems ask question here some one should be able to help out  .

[ddstoys]

I've had a customer here from Geelong who had an Adams family bought it from a bumper employee it broke down he came fixed it broke down again then coulnt get him out again.   12 month later he offered him bugger all for it which he took because he couldn't get anyone to fix it.    Not sure how much truth is in the story but pretty dodgy if it is

[goodolddays]

Yeah the whole trade in talk to bumper got my alarm bells ringing. He pretty much told me to offload and start again. That I'd got it cheap (1500 from oscar) and that I'd been taught a harsh lesson. He never suggested maybe a loose wire and I emailed him the video too. I was polite and in desperate need of help. Real worry. I'm a first time buyer and know techs are in high demand but this experience has left me in real fear of future problems...

Keep in mind that all pinballs break down from time to time .. this is part of the fun of pinball ownership .
The real fun is learning how to fix them yourself with the help from the great members on this site 

[Strangeways]

I'd suggest the flipper issue was coincidental. I don't think it would be a deliberate act.

 

Hope my comment didn't come across wrong, I didn't mean deliberate, I meant bumped, knocked connection whilst working around on machine.
Cheers,

Not at all - I understand your comments as intended.

Good and bad experiences are part of the hobby. But as Daniel suggests, part of owning a machine is the awareness that issues are part of the fun, and there are always people willing to help should you be stumped.

The reason why Good Technicians are hard to find is because they are almost always hobbyists that have learnt to fix their own games. There are dealers that charge $135 to change fuses, that's another reason why it is an advantage to learn to maintain them.

The key is that games are mechanical, and parts were out and cause machines to break down.

[Boots]

He also couldn't explain why the pinnie had shorted out and cut the power in my home. His explanation was that maybe my house was struck by lightning. I found this bizarre given his experience.

Sounds like a load of BS to me.
According to this guy there would be thousands of dud machines around.
Saying it is a dud means he just doesn't know what it is and can't be bothered.
Anything can be fixed if the person trying to fix it is stubborn enough.

I would suggest anyone who owns pinballs is stubborn, you need to be sometimes - I know I am.

[Marty Machine]

He said he knew everything about pinnies....

....but he couldn't fix the rear lights........ some techs crack me up, nothing more than used car dealers....

Mate, i feel for you, and well done finding the wire yourself...

His whole outlook on your pin is less than dull, not sure WHO he was representing, but mate i feel you were ABOUT to be taken for a ride......lucky you weren't.....

At the end of the day, you (ALL) should know that you can ask questions here, and have local AP members pop around for a looksee.....


Well, i guess the next step forward is for someone to start thinking about those rear lights, and things to check, baring in mind that the machine might be modified or have a wire or 2 missing from previous owner(s)....


MM.

[ajlaird]

It is amazing how many times a loose wire or bad solder joint has been the problem even in my limited experience.

We are here to help, and most of the time someone pretty experienced will jump in and assist with any issues.

If you need hands-on assistance then some members are willing to do that too but probably they are thirsty so be warned!

A lot of the time fixing a pinball machine is about understanding what is supposed to happen, and patiently working through the possibilities of why it isn't working until the problem is solved. If it is getting too much, take a break and try again later.

A soldering iron and multimeter are must-haves for all pinball owners unless you want to pay technicians every time you have a problem.

[weed of crime]

Yeah I definitely felt a ride about to take place. How unfortunate. The rear lights were working before the original short when my house was "struck by lightning". Rear spot light and four back lights where ball rolls through are out. Cosmetic problems only as all playfield lights are working. I reckon the switch where the ball drains may also have a loose wire now too cos sometimes it doesn't recognise an end of game ball. Tech was pretty rough on the old girl.